Vargas, 28, joins Ethan Hastert of Elburn and Jeff Danklefsen of Geneva in seeking the 14th District seat that used to be held by Hastert's father, Dennis.

Hastert resigned in 2007; Foster was elected in a special election in March 2008, and re-elected that fall.

Vargas, who works for the Defense Department, has earned the Global War on Terrorism Civilian Service Medal for his work on rebuilding Iraq's economy.

In 2005, the St. Charles native was elected chairman of the Kane County Young Republicans, serving for a year.

"Help is on the way," Vargas said in a prepared statement. "With unemployment still on the rise, it is clear that families within the district are in need of at least two things right now: Jobs and new leadership." Vargas also added, "While job creation should be our No. 1 priority, we cannot forget that we are still a country at war. With so many of our service members deploying to Iraq and Afghanistan, we can't forget about them, and we certainly cannot afford to take our eye off the ball.

"The future of the Republican Party is not in our rear view mirror," said Vargas. "My candidacy represents the next generation of leadership - a generation committed to good government and in rebuilding the Republican Party at the grass roots level."